At 28 years old, I have been into home audio for about 11 years now. This system is my work in progress and I have a long way to go before I reach my goal. I listen to about 30% home theater and 70% music. The better my system gets, the more I seem to listen to music. I feel that the Ayre / Vandersteen / Pranawire / Kubala-Sosna combo is a good one. Eventually, I would like to phase out the Kubala-Sosna and go all Pranawire.
Most people have never heard of Pranawire, however, after trying the top-of-the-line offerings from over 30 cable manufacturers, I believe that Pranawire is of the best out there regardless of cost.
Fully balanced class A amp with evolution upgrade (150 watts X 2)
Audio Research Ref 3
Fully balanced class A preamp
Vandersteen Quatro
Four-way class A speaker with 300 watt built in subs. I am using them with the balanced crossover and they are amazing.
Modwright Platinum Truth Sony 9100
This is a modified Sony 9100 player. It was upgraded to a Platinum Truth mod by Modwright
Pranawire Nataraja
This is a pair of 1.5 meter Pranawire Nataraja that is being run from my CD player to preamp. Hands down, it is the best interconnect that I have heard. The company does have a higher level model, but I've never listened for fear that I will want to buy it
Pranawire Nataraja
1 meter XLR from preamp to amp
Pranawire Realization Kensho
I am using this Running Springs Audio Haley It really cleans up the grunge and lets the music shine through better than the Cardas Mongoose cable.
Kubala-Sosna Emotion
I am running this from the Running Springs Audio Haley power conditioner to Ayre V-5xe amp
Kubala-Sosna Emotion
I am using this from my Running Springs Audio Haley to my Modwright Platinum Truth Sony 999Es CD Player
Kubala-Sosna Emotion
I am running this power cord from my Running Springs Audio to my power source on my Modwright Platinum Truth Sony 999ES
Kubala-Sosna Emotion
Speaker cables with Kubala-Sosna Emotion jumpers
Running Springs Audio Haley
Six outlet / 1800 watts of power conditioning
Auralex Room Treatment
I am using 4 Auralex panels that are 2X4 feet and 2 inches thick
Shakti Stones
I picked some of these up thinking I would give them a try and that I wouldn't hear much difference, but they cleaned up the sound nicely so I decided to keep them. I have three. I use one on my RSA Haley, one on the power source to my CD player, and one on the CD player itself. Each stone provides better results.
Best sound from Quatros I have heard is with Ayre amplication. Hope to make same move that you plan at some point in future. I have Wood CT edition. Really curious to hear original since Vandersteen for longest time advocated against enclosed cabinets. Thanks for sharing pics and experience with your intelligent system.
The 9100 was not the problem. I was still using the stock power cord on the Audio Research Ref 3. When I changed it out and put a Kubala-Sosna Emotion cable in its place everything sounded great.
I also have a Spectron Musician III SE amp coming to audition. I'll post more after I hear it.
System edited: I replaced the Modwright 999ES with the Modwright 9100. So far, the 9100 easily bests the 999ES in every way except in the treble range. The unit is brand new and I have only logged about 24 hours on it so I am hoping it will improve after is has a couple hundred hours. I will post more comments in a week or two.
kmiller, I have the ref 3 as well and love it. Some people have had good luck tube rolling, especially the power tube. As soon as my system burns in more I will do the same. If you do decide to change tubes, I would be interested to hear your results.
The Audio Research Ref 3 is a big step up from the K-5xe in terms of having a lower noise floor, its ability to deal with complex passages, and ability to convey fine details. The layering of sounds is drastically improved and the bass is much tighter and deeper. I am very happy with the unit thus far.
System edited: So I am selling the Ayre K-5xe and replacing it with a Audio Research Ref 3 preamp. I am pretty excited and think this will be a big improvement. I'll post more results after continued listening
System edited: I switched out the Synergistic Research Resolution Reference X2 for the Kubala-Sosna Emotion speaker cable. The Emotion seems to have a lower noise floor and better bass while allowing more of the small details to shine through.
System edited: I recently purchased some used Shakti stones after reading some some postings on audiogon. I was skeptical and expected to turn right back around and sell them, but have had some great results on my RSA Haley and power source for my CD player. I would actually like to pick up a few more for my CD player, preamp, and amp. In any case, definitely worth an audition
System edited: I got a chance to change my system configuration and demo some Kubala-Sosna Emotion speaker cables with a BAT 51-SE preamp. The improvements were pretty amazing across the board. After getting the Kubala-Sosna Emotion speaker cable, I will look into upgrading my preamp. I am considering the Ayre K-1Xe, BAT 51-SE, VTL TL 6.5 and 7.5, Cary SLP 05, Levinson No 32, Aesthetix Calypso, and Convergent Audio Technology SL-1 mk2. If anyone has thoughts, I would love to hear them.
System edited: I've noticed that I am getting a some harsh sound in the treble range. I am not sure if this is due to room acoustics or components/cabling. If anyone has any ideas on how to tame this, let me know. I am going to try going from the stock cord on the Running Springs Audio Haley to the Cardas Mongoose to see if it makes a difference.
System edited: Here are some new pics. My speakers are having some work done and should be back within a week. I will post new pics when they get back.
The Pranawire is great. It provides a much greater sense of dimensionality and nuance over other cables lines I have heard. I was particularly impressed by how much the Kensho power cable cleaned up the sound on my amp allowed the music to shine through. The little details and nuances that had been missing with other cables lines can definitely be heard using the Pranawire cables.
The Auralex really cleaned up a great deal of the echo in the room. The sound is much clearer. I would like to get some traps for the corners or the room and some bass traps as well now.
System edited: I got a good deal on some 2X4 foot Auralex panels(2 inches thick) and decided to jump on the ability to start treating the room. I will post more comments after listening further.
System edited: I am up in Chicago now in a room that is 14'X 16' and am getting a nasty echo in the room. I am thinking of trying some room treatments in the upper corners of the room to eliminate the megaphone effect. If anyone has any suggestions, let me know.
System edited: I recently added a Pranawire Realization Kensho to my amp. It really cleans up the grunge and lets the music shine through. I highly recommend it for an amp. I also recently moved to Chicago so if there are any audiophiles in the area, let me know.
System edited: Unfortunately, my system will be out of commision for about 6 weeks since I am sending my speakers back to Vandersteen to fix the bases that Fedex destroyed. When they get back I will be switching over to Pranawire for my interconnects, speaker wire, and power cords. I will post more after getting a chance to listen
I am EXTREMELY pleased with the Vandersteen Quatros. They are much better than that 3A Signatures in my opinion. I've finished my evaluation of the Pranawire Realization Kensho. While I did not think it was markedly better on my CD player, it was definitely better on than the Synergistic Reference (which is quite good) on my preamp. I then placed the Realization Kensho on my amp. The differences were not subtle. Dynamics were drastically better while more controlled. I strongly endorse the Pranawire Realization Kensho for amps and possibly preamps. For a CD player, I think the Samhadi would probably be better.
System edited: The last week has been very interesting. I received my Quatro speakers and gave them a quick and dirty placement and a few tweaks. Unfortunately, Fedex damaged them in the move and now they need to be sent back to Vandersteen to be fixed. I am not too happy since this is going to be a 5-6 week process since Vandersteen is so backed up. On a more positive note, I've been playing around with interconnects again and am considering changing the system cabling. I got some Pranawire and some Kubala-Sosna Emotion interconnects and have been switching them in and out of my system and in different combinations to see what kind of effect I get. I must say that both cables are quite good and I felt that both were better than my Synergistic Research Designers' Reference, which I will be selling. Unfortunately, I only have one set of both cables so I can't run the whole system on either Pranawire or Kubala-Sosna. At this point, I was VERY impressed with the Pranawire and am thinking about getting all Nataraja cabling. I'd go for the higher level Cosmos, but it's just out of my league in terms of price. Besides, Joe has told me that he's working on some cables that will be better than the Cosmos. I will be receiving a Pranawire Realization Kensho power cord this week and if I like what I hear, I will be switching to those as well. In the meantime, I got a chance to play with different power cords on my Runnings Springs Audio Haley. The better the cord that I used, the better the dynamics got and the lower the noise floor became. I tried the Synergistic Research Reference Master Coupler vs the VH Audio Airsine and the Synergistic sounded better in my system. More to post in the upcoming weeks, but don't be surprised if you see the system title change to Vandersteen / Ayre / Pranawire
The internal amp only drives the subwoofer. The rest of the speaker is being driven by my Ayre V-5Xe which is quite good in my opinion. I never thought there was anything mid-fi about the Quatros in my listening sessions.
Something about the internal amp in the Quattros has always seemed strange/"mid-fi" to me. Did you have similar concerns before pulling the trigger on the Quattros?
Last night I spent about 3 hours doing different compinations of Pranawire Nataraja, Kubala-Sosna Emotion, and Synergistic Designers' Reference Interconnects from CD to Preamp and Preamp to Amp. The best combination (and it wasn't close) was with the Nataraja on from CD player to Preamp and the Emotion from Preamp to Amp. I was simply amazed at how much better it was than my previos setup and the other iterations that I went through. I will post more as I do more listening
I actually had a V-3 with a K-3X a few years back and was running them with the Vandersteen 2Ce Sigs. I was fairly satisfied with the sound, but wanted to go more towards home theater and ended up dropping the K-3X. My experience has shown that the most important components in a system are the CD player and speakers. I am also amazed at the things some people say/post about cabling. Anyone who says cables don't make a difference simply needs to have their hearing checked.
I heard the Maggies, but in a different application and thought they sounded amazing. However, they were running off a Sony SCD-1 and about $30,000 of associated equipment so I don't think it was a fair comparison.
With the right gear, I don't think you can go wrong with either one of those speakers lines. I have heard all of the speakers in the Vandersteen line and must say that the 2Ce Sigs and Quatros are the best value in my opinion. The 3A Sigs, while better than the 2Ce Sigs, are not enough of an improvement to justify the price increase. The Quatros, however, take it to a whole new level. I have just started to listed, but they are amazing so far and I don't even have them dialed in properly in terms of setup.
Hey, I'm updating my system to be a mini version of yours ;) I'll have an Ayre V-3 and Vandersteen 2CE sigs with a BAT VK-3i preamp... I hope I don't miss my Maggie's too much, but I wanted to try and dispell the hype around the Vandy's as soon as possible so I can get back to the sweet sound of the Magnepans! Okay, well at lease *hear* what the hype is all about and decide for myself!
